Debugging a Hunter fan?

IaLeo

Well-known Member
The fan just quietly, no smokily quit.
1. checked voltage at wall switch feeding it. OK
2. 2nd wall switch controls lamps under fan. lamps light. OK
3 gob of wire incestusly connected to two black things and the green rotary? jerk-jerk speed switch, and the directional switch, all wires end up in a small connector block, the other half goes up into the the fan hub.
4. Question, which thing most likely to drop continuity? The one thing (block) has very brief diagram, indicating capicitors. Anyone had experience with ceiling fan failures that might advise me where to look FIRST for the problem? Cannot figure out the motor wires to check the windings for continuity....yet.
Thanks. leo
 
Is it one of the fans that slides in to the mounting brackets to make contact with electrical connections, if so I would check there. I know because I just took one apart and before I figured it out it was not usable again.
 
How about the fan speed switch? That circuit is independent of the light. I never lost one. Had to replace a speed switch due to the chain
coming out of one, just worn out.

Black is hot. There will probably be 3 blacks: Input power, power to the wall light switch if you have one....may be white with black tape to
designate power usage, and a pigtail for the fan switch L terminal. If as stated, on the same wire pair that left, the black will come back from
the wall switch and will be connected to the light black......no light switch on the fan proper. If the light switch is integral to the fan, the black
light wire will come from the built in light switch and will go to the black connections.

All whites (AC returns) tied together including the light white. All green safety grounds connected together and one under green fan screw.

I don't have a fan wiring diagram but I just looked at a spare switch and it has L and 1,2,3 corresponding to the fan speed wires. Fan speed
colors will be other than black, white, and green. Red and blue maybe yellow or brown for guesses.

Each fan wire plugs into a slot on the switch corresponding to that fan speeds. If you get a fan wire into the wrong speed hole (line hole "L"
excluded) the fan will just do the wrong thing. Example would be the first click would be slow speed rather than high. Or second click would be
slow rather than med. Simple thing to swap. Lowes and HD have the switches and they are common items among fans.
 
The most common problem that I have found is
the wire was not secured under the wire nut
where it connects to the house wiring. As
was previously mentioned the fan speed
switch is another point of failure, I
personally have never replaced one on a
Hunter but I would surely check there
second. As far as there being only 1 type
of speed control I may modify that a bit.
Hunter as far as I know only used 1 type,
however among different brands there are at
least 3 different types. Some of them switch
power to several wires while another only
has power on 1 output wire at a time. I only
know this because it wasn't until I got to
the third style that I was able to fix an el
cheapo fan. Hunter is a good brand so I
would try the easy stuff first.
 
I bet the capacitor is the culprit. Look at it closely and see if there are any signs of bulging or heat. Even if there is not apparent damage, they are usually pretty cheap. Google fan capacitors and look at the values and match them up. They don't have to be exact, but close. Since it's a Hunter the exact replacement is likely available.

Other than that the switch is always a possibility. Again, as others mention, most all Hunters use the same style, but make sure if you can before experimenting.

Make double sure power is completely off to the fan before doing anything. Many times in older houses the polarity has been mixed up and hot and neutral have been reversed in the ceiling. I ran into that in my mother in law's old house and her mother's as well a few years back when I was putting fans up for them. Everything worked, but light switches were switching the neutral in several rooms.
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top